20 Movies With Happy Endings That Are Actually Incredibly Sad Once You’ve Taken A Closer Look

18. Independence Day (1996)

It may seem inconceivable that Independence Day ends on anything else than a high note. Earth has just been saved from a vengeful bunch of aliens, after all. But, oh wait, that’s right: millions of people have been completely wiped out. Yikes. And how can any kind of order ever be restored after such mass devastation? Well, that’s a question for another day, it appears…

17. Superman Returns (2006)

Don’t be fooled by Superman Returns’ conclusion, either. Just think of what happens right before the credits roll: the titular superhero zooms off and abandons his son once more. Yep, Superman’s a deadbeat dad. And we suspect that Lois Lane will have a heck of a time getting alimony out of the Man of Steel, too.

16. Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

It turns out that Silver Linings Playbook’s Tiffany Maxwell is something of a good luck charm for Robert De Niro’s character Pat Solitano Sr. That certainly seems to be the case at the end of the dramedy, when both of Solitano Sr.’s bets come good. And love prevails, too, when Maxwell and Pat Solitano Jr. begin dating. But bipolar disorder and gambling addictions don’t just go away. Let’s hope, then, that at least some of the proceeds from the new restaurant are used to pay for family therapy…